LOOK IT UP, TRACK IT DOWN

NASA satellites like this one will be used to collect data on how our response to COVID-19 has affected the environment and our socioeconomic activity. (Photo by NASA)

How Does the Pandemic Look From Space?
Swans (and the occasional tourist) are swimming in the clear water of Venice’s canals. Countless tons of medical protection equipment — masks, gloves, disinfectant wipes — are clogging landfills. What’s the bottom line for the planet? Are we doing better or worse these days?

To find out, NASA, the European Space Agency, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) are unveiling a project this week called The COVID-19 Earth Observation Dashboard. They’ll be using satellite data to identify how the response to the pandemic has impacted the environment and human socioeconomic activity.

Got questions? Who doesn’t? The project’s launch includes a press conference this Thursday, June 25, at 9 a.m. EDT. Before or during the conference, you can send in your questions via social media using the hashtag #AskNASA.
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Audio of the teleconference with supporting graphics will stream live at:
http://www.nasa.gov/live

​—Karen McCann

What else is NASA doing about the COVID-19 pandemic?

• NASA Astrobiologists Seek Antiviral Solutions to COVID-19

• NASA Supercomputers Power Coronavirus Research

• Johnson Space Center Develops New Ventilators, Oxygen Helmet
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Kentucky state representative Charles Booker is running against Amy McGrath in Tuesday's Democratic primary, hoping to unseat Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell in the fall. (Photo: Alton Strupp, Louisville Courier Journal)

Look it Up, Track it Down
You’ve all been taking in the news in the world through a small electronic rectangle, same as I have. I hope I understand what's important, I want to get it right.
This week, the Women’s March and Media Matters hosted a webinar on Misinformation in Times of Crisis. (video of the presentation is here), offering tools to help identify false and misleading info and avoid its spread.
We have talked about these resources before, but they are worth repeating: Snopes; Politifact; Media Bias Fact Check. And as always, use your own Google-driven search for the original story or basis in fact.
—Kathy Sherretts
And, PS: Happy Pride Month, everyone!
—Kathy Sherretts

Celebration:
Jezebel: The Story of Katie Darling and the Complex Jubilation of Juneteenth by Lindsey Norward
“Abraham Lincoln didn’t free the slaves,” says the author's mom. “The Emancipation Proclamation didn’t free them either. Black people freed themselves.”
Assembly Required:
Politico: The City that Really Did Abolish the Police by Katherine Landergan
Camden, NJ is a rare—and complicated—success story.

Throwin' It All Away:
Grist: Great, now the ocean is filled with COVID trash, by Joseph Winters
Single-use personal protective equipment is helping keep people safe. But all that increased plastic production comes with consequences. Around the world, gloves, masks, and empty bottles of hand sanitizer are turning up everywhere.

Too Late:
Mother Jones: Say It Under Oath, Asshole by Dan Friedman
If John Bolton is a whistleblower, he might be the least courageous one in American history.
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Voting in a Pandemic Year
Help make the 2020 election free, fair, accessible, and secure,
from the Brennan Center for Justice

Learn More About Candidates and Issues! 

• Progressive Action, Global Exchange (PAGE) 
• Americans of Conscience Checklist
• ClimateRecovery.org​

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